Review: Call of Duty Mobile
After a long time of holding off, one of the world’s most popular gaming franchises – Call of Duty – was released for mobile gamers to enjoy, during the last half of 2019.
Likely a decision influenced by the success of Fortnight on mobile, Activision sought the assistance of TiMi Studios – a subsidiary of Asianl tech giant, Tencent – to develop the online Free-to-play mobile shooter. It impressively incorporates a mixture of maps and weapons from CoD: Modern Warfare and Black ops 4 in a clean package that had the controls adapted for mobile.
Does It Work?
This probably has something to do with why Ativision opted to delay the development and release of this game for so long. Designing a control scheme that works is one the trickiest parts of mobile gaming, especially for shooters.
The analog sticks of a controller, or a keyboard and mouse tend to be more precise and feel more natural than controls that are displayed on the very same touch responsive screen you view the in game world through.
Much to the delight of CoD enthusiasts – considering the 100 million downloads in its first week of availability – the Activision and Tencent collaborative effort was able to design a functional control scheme that does not give the game a watered-down feel. Instead one simply admires how well they managed the adaptation. It is Call of Duty.
The flow of the game is very much the same as Call of Duty on PC or console. Plus, a number of the game modes Call of Duty fans know and love – like team death-match, and gun-game – have been included in the mobile game.
As For Those Controls
Call of Duty: Mobile has a simplistic control layout where your left thumb has the responsibility of controlling your movements delegated to it, while the right is given the task of aiming. Interestingly, the developers opted out of adding a button to shoot. Instead, your weapon will fire automatically when crosshare/reticle meet with your intended target.
A concept that may sound strange to some, but what’s possibly stranger than how it sounds is that it actually works. However, an interested player should keep in mind that good aim is just as important in the moblie game as it is on other platforms. The gun firing itself should not be misunderstood for automatic smooth sailing.
The control settings also feature an advanced option which adds a button that enables aiming down sight. Earlier this year support for a controller was added, making this an even more compelling offering.
Gamplay And The Modes
The game has a pretty good system progression that starts you out against – fairly easy to eliminate – bot players before putting you up against other human players.
Just as with the other platforms, Call of Duty: Mobile players are able to use kill streak rewards, pick up weapons from dead enemies, and customise their weapons – even though this is limited in comparison.
As for the game modes, Activision chilose to remove the zombies mode, a lack of player interest was the reason. However, there is the much talked about battle royale mode – not too dissimilar to CoD Black ops 4’s – and a five-on-five mode for when you’re interested in shorter, more fast-paced action.
Prod & Cons
The good is that it is a well put together offering for mobile gaming. With the fact that it was made for mobile in mind, one appreciates what Call of Duty: Mobile has to offer.
The downside is that it may start to become a little too easy for some players who really get into it.